Today, ecclesiology usually refers to the theological study of the Christian church. However when the word was coined in the late 1830s, it was defined as the science of the building and decoration of churches and it is still, though rarely, used in this sense.In its theological sense, ecclesiology...

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....

s of other countries, although in Catholic countries, the nuncio often ranks above Ambassadors in diplomatic protocol.

Terminology and history

A Papal Nuncio (officially known as an Apostolic Nuncio) is a permanent diplomatic representative (head of diplomatic mission

Diplomatic mission

A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...

The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...

A sovereign state, or simply, state, is a state with a defined territory on which it exercises internal and external sovereignty, a permanent population, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other sovereign states. It is also normally understood to be a state which is neither...

The Arab League , officially called the League of Arab States , is a regional organisation of Arab states in North and Northeast Africa, and Southwest Asia . It was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945 with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan , Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Yemen joined as a...

The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. It specifies the privileges of a diplomatic mission that enable diplomats to perform their function without fear of coercion or...

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. It specifies the privileges of a diplomatic mission that enable diplomats to perform their function without fear of coercion or...

allows the receiving state to grant seniority of precedence to the papal nuncio over others of ambassadorial rank accredited to the same country, and may grant the deanship of that country's diplomatic corps to the nuncio regardless of seniority.

In addition, the Nuncio serves as the liaison between the Holy See and the Roman Catholic diocesan episcopate in the nation or region to which he is assigned. The national or regional episcopate is usually supervised by a national conference of bishops, whose presiding officer is often the highest ranking bishop or archbishop of that nation, or is elected from the diocesean ordinaries

Ordinary

In those hierarchically organised churches of Western Christianity which have an ecclesiastical law system, an ordinary is an officer of the church who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute the church's laws...

of the nation or region.

Formerly, the title Internuncio denoted a papal diplomatic representative of the second class, corresponding to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary as a title for diplomatic representatives of states (cf. Article 14, par. 2 of the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations

Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations

The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961 is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries. It specifies the privileges of a diplomatic mission that enable diplomats to perform their function without fear of coercion or...

). Before 1829, internuncio was the title applied instead to the interim head of a mission when one Nuncio had left office and his replacement had not yet assumed it.

A legate a latere is a temporary papal representative or a representative for a special purpose.

Historically, the most important type of apocrisiary (a title also applying to representatives exchanged by a high prelate with a Patriarch) was the equivalent of a nuncio, sent by the Pope to the Byzantine Empire

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

remained under Byzantine control, several Popes were former apocrisiaries.

Pro-Nuncio was a term used from 1965 to 1991 for a papal diplomatic representative of full ambassadorial rank accredited to a country that did not accord him precedence over other ambassadors and de jure deanship of the Diplomatic Corps. In those countries, the papal representative's precedence within the corps is exactly on a par with that of the other members of ambassadorial rank, so that he becomes dean only on becoming the senior member of the corps.

For nations with whom the Holy See has no diplomatic ties, an Apostolic Delegate is sent to serve as a liaison with the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

in that nation, though not accredited to the government of the state. Apostolic delegates have the same ecclesiastical rank as nuncios, but have no formal diplomatic status, though in some countries they have some diplomatic privileges. Indeed an apostolic delegate served as the Holy See's de facto diplomatic representative to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

, until both major Anglo-Saxon states with a predominantly Protestant tradition established full-fledged relations with the Holy See in the late twentieth century, allowing for the appointment of a Papal Nuncio (see the list of British Ambassadors to the Holy See). Archbishop Pio Laghi, for example, was first apostolic delegate, then pro-nuncio, to the United States during the Jimmy Carter

Jimmy Carter

James Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...

George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

. These delegates are also appointed nuncio to at least some of the many states covered by their delegation, but the area entrusted to them also contains one or more territories that either are not independent states or are states that do not have diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

Heads of mission shall take precedence in their respective classes in the order of the date and time of taking up their functions in accordance with Article 13.

Alterations in the credentials of a head of mission not involving any change of class shall not affect his precedence.

This article is without prejudice to any practice accepted by the receiving State regarding the precedence of the representative of the Holy See.

In accordance with this article, many states (even not predominantly Catholic ones such as Germany and Switzerland and including the great majority in central and western Europe and in the Americas) give precedence to the Nuncio over other diplomatic representatives, according him the position of Dean of the Diplomatic Corps reserved in other countries for the longest-serving resident ambassador.

List of diplomatic posts of the Holy See

The Pope accredits diplomats with the following states and other subjects of international law (list as per January 2010):

In Africa

The Apostolic Nunciature to Algeria is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Algeria. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to Algeria with the rank of an ambassador...

In the Americas

The Apostolic Nuncio to Argentina is the principal representative of the Holy See to the Government of Argentina. The nunciature is at the Fernández Anchorena Palace, in Buenos Aires.-Apostolic Nuncio to Argentina:*Antonio Sabatucci...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Republic of Brazil is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador....

The Apostolic Nunciature to Colombia is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Colombia. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to Colombia with the rank of an ambassador...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Republic of Mexico is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Mexico. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador....

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Republic of Peru is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Peru. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador....

The Apostolic Nuncio to Venezuela is the holder of a diplomatic position within the Catholic Church, who acts as Ambassador of the Holy See to Venezuela.-Apostolic Nuncios to Venezuela:*Serafino Vannutelli...

In Asia

The Apostolic Nuncio to Iraq is the representative of the Holy See in Iraq. He is appointed by the Pope, currently Benedict XVI, and represents all Catholics in the country, both Latin Rite and Eastern Catholic, on behalf of the pope. Since 1966 the government of Iraq has had full diplomatic...

The Apostolic Nunciature to Pakistan is a Vatican Diplomatic Post equivalent to an Embassy.The Nunciature was located in the St. Anthony’s Parish in its Chancellery at old Clifton when the Vatican established diplomatic relations with Pakistan on July 17, 1950.When the Capital of Pakistan was...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Philippines is a top-level diplomatic mission of the Holy See to the Republic of the Philippines. An apostolic nuncio is equivalent to an ambassador. He is often an archbishop.-History:...

In Europe

The Apostolic Nuncio to the Austria is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador....

The Apostolic Nuncio to Belgium is the holder of a diplomatic position within the Catholic Church, who acts as Ambassador of the Holy See to the Belgium.-History:Diplomatic relations between the Belgian state and the Holy See began in 1835...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the French Republic is an ecclesiastical office of the Catholic Church in France. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador....

The Apostolic Nunciature to Germany is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Germany. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to Germany with the rank of an ambassador. The office of the nunciature has been located in Berlin...

The Nunciature to Great Britain is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Great Britain. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to the Court of St. James with the rank of an ambassador. The office of the nunciature is located...

The Holy See, as the central government of the Catholic Church , has full diplomatic ties with Ireland as well as many other countries worldwide. The current Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland is Archbishop-elect Monsignor Charles John Brown...

add The Apostolic Nuncio to the Netherlands is the principal representative of the Holy See to the Royal Government of the Netherlands. The nunciature is located at Carnegielaan 5 in The Hague.-Apostolic Nuncio to the Netherlands:...

The Apostolic Nuncio to Poland is one of the oldest nuncios, appointed by the Pope as apostolic representative to the Roman Catholic Church in Poland. Three nuncios to Poland went on to be elected pope...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Republic of Portugal is an ecclesiastical office of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador...

The Apostolic Nunciature to the Kingdom of Spain is an ecclesiastical office of the Catholic Church in Spain. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador. For much of the 19th and 20th Centuries the holders of the...

, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine

In Oceania

The Nunciature to Australia is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Australia. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio to Australia with the rank of an ambassador...

Special cases

The Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations is the representative of the Holy See at the United Nations. The diplomatic mission does not have full ambassador status and thus cannot vote — a decision it has freely taken...

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

The Comoros , officially the Union of the Comoros is an archipelago island nation in the Indian Ocean, located off the eastern coast of Africa, on the northern end of the Mozambique Channel, between northeastern Mozambique and northwestern Madagascar...

The Maldives , , officially Republic of Maldives , also referred to as the Maldive Islands, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean formed by a double chain of twenty-six atolls oriented north-south off India's Lakshadweep islands, between Minicoy Island and...

Mauritania is a country in the Maghreb and West Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean in the west, by Western Sahara in the north, by Algeria in the northeast, by Mali in the east and southeast, and by Senegal in the southwest...

Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...

Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...

Tuvalu , formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls...

Sources and external links

The Catholic Encyclopedia, also referred to as the Old Catholic Encyclopedia and the Original Catholic Encyclopedia, is an English-language encyclopedia published in the United States. The first volume appeared in March 1907 and the last three volumes appeared in 1912, followed by a master index...